Feb 22
ACADEMIC WRITING
Course Introduction:
Course Description:
This course aims to help students
improve their academic writing
ability.
Feb 22
ACADEMIC WRITING
This unit will consist of only 3
classes. Therefore, the goal of
this unit is not to perfect your
writing, but to introduce basic
writing structures and prepare
you for writing in the USA.
Part 1: Introduction to essay
structure.
Part 2: Basic Grammar review.
3
What is Academic Writing?
• It is the process of writing analytically
— about a certain subject.
• Academic writing is the process of
presenting ideas in an organized and
logical way.
a list of documents where
academic writing is used
• Book reviews
• Essays
• Research papers
Descriptive
TYPES
OF
ACADEMIC
WRITING
Narration
Persuasive
or Argumentative
Types of Academic Writing:
• 1. Descriptive: it tells how something looks,
feels, smells, tastes, and/or sounds.
• 2. Narration: Tells the story of something,
someone, or an event. Use time order to
organize sentences.
• 3. Argumentative: opinions and views. To
convince readers.
Types of Academic Writing:
• 1. Descriptive:
• 2. Narration:
• 3. Argumentative:
The Three Parts of an Essay
3 basic parts
1.Introduction
2.Body
3.Conclusion
Introduction
One paragraph
• Thesis statement - Why you’re writing this essay.
• Present 2-5 examples or ideas to support your
opinion.
• Hook sentence.
•
Thesis statement
!
One sentence that tells what the entire essay
is going to be about
!
All paragraphs in the essay support the thesis
statement
Sample - Intro Paragraph
Music and Humans
Music is one of the oldest cultures in the history. It has existed
longer than language. (1)The reason we love music is that
music is a global language and it expresses our emotion.
(2)Music is a part of our life so it is very important.
(3)Scientists started to understand the relation between music
and the brain, and found that music affected human’s body,
mind, and personality. In other words, music has the
power to control people.
Hook Sentence
An "attention getter," also known as an
"attention grabber," "hook," or "hook
sentence," refers to the first sentence of an
essay and is always found in the
introductory paragraph. It grabs your
reader's attention.
Hook Sentence
Ask a Question
Have you ever wondered why _____?
What if ______ happened to you?
Do you know the real story behind ____?
Have you ever wondered why the city of San Francisco has
such high instances of dog ownership? For decades, San Francisco
has been a pet-friendly city sporting a large number of dog parks and
other dog-friendly facilities and events. It is also a city that has passed
many dog-friendly laws and regulations. In this essay, I will discus the
history of San Francisco and how it became such a hot spot for dogs and
the humans who love them.
Hook Sentence
2. Tell a Story
• She walked to the
store...
• I once visited Madrid...
• The cat yawned lazily...
3. Give a fact or opinion
• Music is one of the oldest cultures
in the history.
• Hamburgers are better than
pizza!!
• Children should be spanked!
Sample - Intro Paragraph
Music and Humans
Hook sentence
Music is one of the oldest cultures in the history. It has
existed longer than language. (1)The reason we love music is
that music is a global language and it expresses our emotion.
(2)Music is a part of our life so it is very important.
(3)Scientists started to understand the relation between music
and the brain, and found that music affected human’s body,
mind, and personality. In other words, music has the
power to control people. Thesis
Body
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Consists of 2-5 paragraphs
1st paragraph details on example one
2nd paragraph details on example two
3rd paragraph details on example three
Each paragraph should have 3 - 5 sentences
Use transitional words and phrases:
Firstly,
Then
Secondly,
Next
Finally,
Another reason is…
Furthermore
Indent to show where a new paragraph begins
Topic Sentence
!
Each body paragraph has a topic sentence
!
One sentence that tells what the paragraph is
going to be about
!
All sentences in the paragraph support the
topic sentence
Firstly, music expresses how we feel.
Music is what feelings sound like. We are
moved by it. We feel connected to it. It
reflects our experiences. If I asked you to
tell me your favorite bands or musicians,
you could quickly reply with a long list.
Conclusion
Consists of one paragraph: 2-7 sentences.
• Similar to the introduction - NOT A COPY AND
PASTE.
•
INTRO
Music is one of the oldest cultures in the history. It has existed
longer than language. (1)The reason we love music is that music
is a global language and it expresses our emotion.(2)Music is a
part of our life so it is very important. (3)Scientists started to
understand the relation between music and the brain, and found
that music affected human’s body, mind, and personality. In
other words, music has the power to control people.
CONCLUSION
For these three reasons, I conclude that music has the power the
to control people. Imagine a world where music does not exist.
The thought truly disturbs me. The world would be boring and
emotionless. I listen to about 100 songs in a day - at work, at home,
when I exercise, and when I sleep. I don't intend on stopping any
time soon!
CONCLUSION PARAGRAPH
PHRASES
•In conclusion,
•In summary,
•As you can see, I feel that
•To recap,
In Review
•
The three parts of an essay will organize into 4+ paragraphs:
1st Introduction
Address the topic (thesis statement)
Present three examples
2nd Details on example one
3rd Details on example two
4th Details on example three
5th Conclusion
Re-word the introduction
Hook sentence
activity